Andrew Cummings

About me

We all talk to family, friends, work colleagues, and sometimes watching what we can and cant say leaves us with left over thoughts and feelings. I believe this is where counselling comes in, as it is a space where you can truly be yourself and heard in a safe and respectful way.

I am a non-directive and non-judgemental person who does not have a vested interest in changing you, your views or life choices and I believe this allows our relationship to form. My role as counsellor is not to wave a magic wand and make changes for you, instead I work with you to explore and remove barriers that are creating blocks and stopping you from living the life you want, stop you from living your life to the full or in the way you want.

The therapeutic relationship between us is unique, I work in a way which respects our relationship and will work with you at your pace. I respect how hard it can be to open up, to take a chance, to be vulnerable and in contact with another person. I work through permission giving, asking before entering into your world and respecting the boundaries between us.

Counselling is not about changing other people, about cutting out conflict instead it is a space where you can look at changes you can make and how you can make different choices. Therapy is a process of personal growth, a way of moving on with our lives in a different way; of exploring meanings; and to experiment with new ways of being.

I offer counselling and therapy for individuals and couples. Amongst the issues I deal with are:

Stress, anxiety and depression

Anger and isolation

Relationship problems and couple issues

Low self-esteem

Addiction to drugs and/or alcohol

Significant other counselling for addiction

Changes in work circumstances

Trauma

Loss and bereavement

We all experience a range of thoughts and feelings on a daily basis, some are easier to express and acknowledge; No feelings are wrong, sometimes they help us make unhelpful choices.

Further information, question and answers and contact details can be found on my website.

Training, qualifications & experience

I gained my Diploma in Humanistic Counselling from The Wealden Institute of Counselling and Psychotherapy. My diploma included Gestalt, Transactional Analysis and Person Centred approaches as the bedrock of their training.

I am a humanistic counsellor which means I draw from different approaches to create a way of facilitating sessions to support; empower and promote you to be able make choices; changes and work towards self-awareness.

I respect you as an individual and believe there is no set way of working and will work with you at your pace and ask permission in any exercises we engage in.

Other areas of counselling I deal with

I also offer animal assisted therapy working with an animal either in the therapy room or at a farm with animals of your choice or you may choose to bring your own animal or pet with you into the therapy room.

Therapies offered

Fees

Choosing a counsellor can be daunting and there are a lot of counsellors offering different styles of counselling. I offer a free 30 minute consultation to see if we can work together, I may be the counsellor you choose to work with or I may not. I will also work with your to refer to other counsellors who I can recommend.

Counselling can be short term (1-10) sessions where you may enter for 6-12 session with a specific area you may wish to look at or longer term. When we work together we form a relationship and will contract to meet weekly for 50 minutes at a set time and hold regular reviews of our work together.

I offer sessions Monday to Saturday with a variety of daytime and evening appointments working from two locations in Brighton and Hove.

One to one counselling for 50 minutes £35.00Couples counselling for 60 minutes £60.00

I also have reduced fee's for students are studying counselling and for people who are on reduced or low incomes, we can discuss this at our initial session.

Further information

I am a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy and work within their ethical framework and adhere to their values and principles as a counsellor. As part of my membership to the BACP I have made a commitment to further my training and knowledge through continuing professional development attending workshops, training days and seminars.

I have regular supervision to ensure I am working in an ethical and client centred way free from my own agenda and working with you at centre of our work.